The Love of My Death
by maggalina
Summary: What awaits the perfect Hufflepuff after his death?


I open my eyes, or I think I do. Everything is black, not like someone turned off the lights but you can still see your hand black but pure black, no light anywhere. I don't even know if my hand is in front of my face. I close my eyes again and all I can see is green. It is a green I have only seen once before, it was in Defence Against The Dark Arts this year with Professor Moody. It is a green from a curse, the killing curse. Everything is starting to make sense now, I remember a graveyard. Is it my grave? No. Someone else's. Harry. No not Harry's, who is Harry? He was there.

Then as soon as everything is coming back the world is light again. I am in the graveyard and I am surrounded in this golden net there are colours, green and red. I look up and I see Harry. Harry Potter. Triwizard Tournament. The maze. Portkey. I'm dead. I see Harry fighting someone but I can't see who it is only I feel attached to their wand.

"Harry. Take my body back, will you? Take my body back to my father." I speak without even realizing it.

Then as suddenly as it went away the darkness returns. I remember everything though. Then suddenly I am in the Hufflepuff common room, I am not by myself. There is one other person there. She looks just like her chocolate frog card but she doesn't at the same time. She looks to be hundreds of years old and seventeen simultaneously. It makes me wonder what I look like.

"You look just like you, Cedric."

And suddenly she only looks seventeen. She is beautiful. You look into her eyes and you see her loyalty and kindness. Helga Hufflepuff is the embodiment of Hufflepuff house and not just in name.

"So are you Cedric. The Goblet didn't select you for no reason. You are the person who best embodies everything that this house was founded on. You are the person I have been waiting for. You are my perfect Hufflepuff. You are honest and hard-working. You are open to everyone's ideas. I saw how you defended that Lovegood girl from her housemates."

"That doesn't mean anything, it was just the right thing to do. What did you mean by 'I'm the one you've been waiting for' though?"

"Not everyone ends up here Cedric, no one since myself. I have been waiting here for centuries for the single soul that would make itself here. I guess you could say I have been waiting for my soul mate. Not everyone's soul mate is born in the same century as them, sometimes not even the same millennium. I have finally found mine though. That is why you are here. Now we can move on, just as soon as you are ready."

"I can be ready now if you want, I suppose. You have been waiting for centuries it is the least I can do."

"This is what I am talking about. I'm sorry to tell you that you cannot just choose to move on. You need to recognize me as your soul mate. It may take some time. That is okay though, I actually haven't been waiting all that long, time passes differently here. You will understand."

"Well how can I...recognize you...then?"

"Just get to know me, Cedric. We are soulmates, I assure you or else you wouldn't be here. This is just giving you a chance to get to know me is all so we can both fall in love."

"You mean sitting in the common room playing 20 questions or something?"

"I would love to try that, it didn't exist when my time came but I have watched people play it. It seems like a good way to get to know someone. Why don't you start?"

"Ok, well why don't you speak like you are from the tenth century? That is when Hogwarts was founded right?"

"I like to keep an eye on what is going on and eventually language evolved so much I had to pay attention and learn just so I didn't feel lost. It does get lonely here and I didn't want to lose my one bit of communication. So, Cedric, what is your favourite flavour of ice cream?"

"Are you serious? That is such a simple question. I would have to say vanilla, though I have tried plenty of flavours and I love them all. Vanilla is nice and simple and I feel like I need to go back to that sometimes, especially when life gets hectic."

At that Helga smiled slightly, her face looking even softer than before. Something about that smile was showing me something. Then she started to fade.

"Was that all it really took, Cedric? A smile? All I can say is I love you too, and I shall see you soon."

I looked down at my own hand but it was gone, I was fading too. That is when I realized what she meant and what I realized what that smile was showing me. One smile and I fell in love. I suppose things work differently when you are dead.

Then everything was white. Nothing was black. It was the opposite of what I had faced right after I died. It was beautiful in its simplicity, it was like vanilla ice cream. Then I saw her. My young ancient love. The person I was destined to be with. We were brought together by death and now nothing can take us apart. The white of this...on...was beautiful and simple. Just like her. It was pure just like her heart. I have never known anything like this feeling but I love it, and I love her.

If someone had told me before I died that I could never find love in life and I would have never believed them but now life seems bland without the love of my death.


End file.
